In The Air Tonight
by Paranoixa
Summary: Katniss has been hijacked. And, despite Haymitch's claim, Peeta isn't fighting to save her. He cant bear the thought of facing the rabid girl clawing at the walls of her cell. But when Katniss's health, and sanity, begin to crumble, Peeta will have to make a decision that will effect not only him, but everyone in Panem. ON HIATUS UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE!
1. Goodbye

**I love Peeta, but I'm gonna have some fun with his personality in this fanfic. I'm sick of people making him out to be this perfect guy who makes no mistakes and never loses his head. Here, I'm aiming for a bit of a more distant and angry Peeta. I wanna see more of his Dark Side. And Katniss didnt shoot the force field. I'll let you guess how Peeta's escape and Katniss's capture from the arena went down in the review section. Best one will be edited into the storyline!**

 **Summary:**

 **Katniss has been hijacked and broken by the Capitol. No longer able to distinguish reality from corruption, she struggles to find the girl on fire. As the rebels attempt to free the Districts of the Capitol's iron grip, old friends will have to fight to convince Peeta that there is still a Katniss to save. But, with Katniss's health and sanity deteriorating, he'll have to make a decision: The freedom of the innocent and betrayed civilians of Panem...or the life of the girl who set the world on fire?**

It was dark. Dark and quiet.

Why?

There had been much of the two earlier. Showers of sparks raining down from the heavens. The sounds of shouts and heavy feet thumping against the ground. It was almost as if she was still there. If she looked up, would she see the forcefield retreating? Would she hear the sound of it disarming, the sirens blaring overhead? Of course not. Because she couldnt see or hear anything.

Katniss sat up with a gasp. "Peeta!" she called out. She looked around her frantically, not comprehending. She didnt even realized someone had shackled her arms and legs until they began to draw blood. And even then, she was vaguely aware of the pain. Where was Peeta? She could remeber seeing him crashing to the ground as she looked on from a distance. Could remember Finnick tossing him over his shoulder, as he scanned the area with a conflicted expression. Could remember a cold hand wrapping around arm before something sharp pierced the skin. Could remember...

Nothing.

"Peeta" she whispered mournfully into the darkness. "Oh, Peeta." Katniss pulled her legs closer into her chest and tried to keep the theories at bay; she distracted herself with simple thoughts: _My name is Katniss Everdeen. I am seventeen years old. And I dont know where I am. And I dont know where Peeta is._ She clenched her eyes and threw the thought away. _I have a little sister. Her name is Primrose Everdeen. I dont know where she is either._ Katniss tried to steady her shaky hands and redirected her train of thought. _I was in the Hunger Games. I survived the Hunger Games. I am alive. I am safe._

Katniss took a shaky breath and felt herself relax. "I am alive" she whispered. "I am safe."

And then there was light.

"Miss Everdeen."  
Katniss jumped and turned around to find a calm looking man watching her. _Capitol officer_ , she thought in pure hatred. They were to blame; everyone involved with anything that had to do with the Capitol. She knew she didnt believe herself. Cinna, one of her closest friends, was involved with the Capitol. But she didnt think of that. She just thought of those cold shackles chaining her to the floor.

And the missing boy.

"Where is Peeta" she asked the man.

He looked at her, unfliching, as he replied "Miss Everdeen, please. We need you to answer some questions."  
"Where's Peeta" she repeated, the panic in her voice becoming clearer with each syllable.

"Where are the rebels?"  
But Katniss wasnt listening. She grabbed hold of the shackles and began to pull as the man sighed and disappeared. Soon after, another faceless man replaced him. He approached the rabid girl and didnt hesitate to shove the needle into her arm.

. . .

Katniss didnt know how long she slept, but she assumed it must have been for some time. Her joints felt stiff and when she tried to sit up, she found a slight crook in her neck. Despite the sleep, however, she didnt feel well rested. In fact, she felt the exact opposite. She felt on edge, as if something terrible was about to happen.

Katniss tried to push the thought out of her head and looked around her. She still didnt know where she, or Peeta, was; it was pleasing to have regained her senses, though. A lamp in the corner provided a soft yellow light and beside it, a radio played classical music. _Mozart_ , Katniss thought absentmindedly as she looked down at herself. She was a wearing a soft blue dress with clouds on them. The serenity of it all, the dress, the music, the atmosphere, contrasted with the restraints hugging her. She glared and started to tug at them when her eyes caught sight of the man with white hair sitting in the chair beside her.

"Miss Everdeen" he greeted.

Katniss surprised both herself and the man when she calmly replied "President Snow."

"Well, I must say, it is a pleasure to see you again."  
"And why is that?"  
He merely smiled, shook his head, and pressed a button on the armrest of his chair. The door opened again and a man pushing a cart entered the room.

"You have become part of a cause that is greater than yourself" Snow began.

Katniss merely watched the man with the cart begin to prepare a needle for injection. It was filled with some kind of syrup. But, despite its bright and cheereful appearance, it left Katniss with a dark and omious feeling. "What do you mean" she asked, her eyes not leaving the needle.

The President leaned closer to her, his eyes sharp and serious. "You are the face of the rebellion. Whether you admit to that or not is none of my concern. Even if what you say is true, that you have no knowledge of this rebellion, the fact remains that you have the power to sway the entire nation of Panem."

Katniss watched, helpless, as the man began to search for an open vein.

"And this worried me for quite some time" Snow continued. "How do you stop a fire from spreading?" He laughed, like a child on Christmas. "The answer's simplicity baffles me, really." He dropped his voice down to a whisper and asked once more "How do you stop a fire from spreading?"

Katniss replied "I dont know" as she felt the man stick the needle into her arm.

President Snow smiled wickedly. "You stop a fire from spreading" he said slowly. "With even more fire."

And then something cool and smooth was seeping into her arm and everything went black.

. . .

 _Two months later ~_

They sat there, those men. There were five of them each with three notepads and two pens; they'd learned from their last visit. They wore black suits and black shoes. Their dark hair was cut short and simple. They looked quite professional. Across from them sat a girl. She was the representation of a garden that had been left unattended: wild, unkempt, feral, insane, diseased even. Her eyes looked like someone had taken a magic marker and outlined them. Her cheeks were so hollow they looked like they were ready to crash in on themselves. Her entire body was caked in blood and dirt. And she was thin. Thinner than she'd ever been her whole life. Her bones stuck out like a cheeta strolling down a city street.

"We've come to ask you some questions. Do you think you can do that?" one man asked, pen drawn and ready to document her every word.

Katniss nodded slowly, her eyes dark and unfocused.

"What is your name?" the second man asked.  
"Katniss Everdeen" she replied robotically.

"Where is your home?"  
"District 12."

The third man raised an eyebrow. "Do you know what happened to it?"  
Katniss nodded. "Peeta Mellark". Her hands began to spasm. "He destroyed it."

"And the people?"  
"The ones that didnt die" she spat. "Are being held prisoner."

The fourth man frowned. "Were you really close with any of them?"  
"Prim. My mom. Darius. Greasy Sae. Madge. Delly. Hazelle. Lady. Rory, Vick, Posy. Rooba." She tried to steady her dancing hands. When she failed, she used them to brush her hair out of her face and laughed bitterly. "Everyone."

"So when you discovered it's bombing, at the hands of Mr. Mellark, how did you feel?"

Katniss remained silent as she stared at the man with such raw intensity, she was surprised she didnt burn a hole in his cranium. How did she feel? How do you describe how you felt when you learn the boy you once spent your life loving is to blame for the destruction of everything you've ever cared about?

"Bad."  
He frowned and said "Miss Everdeen. I thought we agreed you'd be as descriptive as possible."

Her bare foot began to tap the floor rapidly. "Mad" she tried, then, seeing his unsatisfied face, "Infuriated."  
The fifth man looked her in the eye and asked "Should you ever come across Mr. Mellark...what would you immidiate response be?"  
"...I would end him."

The men nodded and began to flip through their notebooks. They compared notes as they gathered their things and noisily let themselves out of the room. They didnt think about the broken girl they left behind. They didnt think about her inability to leave.

Katniss stared at her fingernails laid against the desk. They were chipped and bloody from her clawing at the walls of her cell all day long. Her voice was hoarse from screaming and cursing the day the boy with the bread was born. Her body ached from starvation and neglect from her captors.

How did she feel? She felt scared. Alone. Abandoned. Katniss gave a halfhearted tug at her handcuffs before she dropped her head against the mahogany desk.

Just as the rebels stormed in the room.


	2. Finnick and Peeta

There was noise. So much noise. The sounds of the wounded, moaning and crying for help. Somewhere among the mist, Katniss could have sworn she heard what sounded like happiness, but she instantly scolded herself for thinking so. Happiness. Did such a thing even exist? Could one truly achieve that state of being? She searched the inner depths of her soul and tried to think of a time where she had been truly happy. It took some time to get there, but when she did, all she felt was the distant feeling of watching a stranger from afar.

"Katniss. Can you hear me?"

Katniss squinted into the bright light shining into her eye and tried to listen to the calm, soothing voice above her. They had been ordering her around for the past hour or so. She had a strange feeling like she was in a play. Like her character was supposed to be a bitter and uncooperative girl, but she wasn't playing the role correctly; there was a distant urge to push the nice lady away and do something, _anything_ , other than sit here and be probed. But the urge didn't belong to her. It belonged to some other girl, from some other time. So why where these people acting so cautious, as if they were waiting for something? Katniss began to shake vigorously and rocked herself back and forward.

"Katniss?"

Hesitantly, she looked up and found the lady staring at her. The concern in her soft brown eyes eased her tension but not by much. She tried to control the tremors racking her body.

She laid a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay" she whispered, smiling reassuringly. "They're not going to hurt you anymore. You're safe."

Katniss nodded, though, she wasn't sure what she meant. She was safe? What on earth could that mean? Of course she wasn't safe. She was never safe, hadn't been safe in years. She took a deep breath and tightened her grip on her knees. These people. They seemed trustworthy. They smiled, which was a major improvement over her last captors. All they had done was shove sharp needles into her arm and lock her away in small cells for weeks on end. Katniss shoved her face into her knees and forced herself to think of another time. Of water crashing against rocks. Of the laughter of a girl not yet exposed to the cruelty of the world. Of brave strong arms wrapping around a child who still had a father. Katniss forced herself to take deep, labored breaths and acknowledge the sudden silence around her.

A crowd had gathered. People in unflattering grey uniforms watching her with intense, curious eyes. She vaguely wondered who had caused the disturbance before her eyes landed on the one person she could place. His eyes were bloodshot, as if he'd been crying, but full of happiness. After her doctor whispered something to him, he made slow steps toward her and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Hey, sweetheart."  
Katniss merely stared at him, as her brain began to clear. "Haymitch" she whispered. Her voice was hoarse and quiet. She rubbed her throat absentmindedly and asked "Where are we?"

Haymitch rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "District 13. The new hellhole you'll soon learn to hate." This earned a few pursed lips and unfriendly glances in his direction, but no one said anything.

"District 13" Katniss said. "How...that doesn't...District 13's... gone. It's been gone for seventy five years." She brought her hand up to rub her head, thoroughly confused.

Haymitch simply frowned and gave her a confused look of his own. "What are you talking about? You figured it out back in 12, remember?"

Katniss used her free hand to clench her bedsheets as she forced her eyes closed. "12" she said, breathily. "It's... It's gone. Isn't it?"  
Haymitch nodded solemnly. "Your mother, sister, and Gale made it out, though. And only a few hundred others."

Only a few hundred. Out of thousands. She kept her eyes closed and felt her hands began to spasm as a memory began to resurface. A small T.V. in a small room with a small Katniss strapped to a small chair. Bombs raining down on unsuspecting people. "They were bombed." It wasn't a question; she'd seen the footage enough to know what had happened.

"Yeah."

She bit her lip to keep herself from screaming. "B-Because of him."

"Yeah."

She forced her eyes opened and hissed "Because of Peeta."

A rumble of confusion swept through the crowd just as a panicked, though relieved, voice pierced the air. "Katniss! Katniss!" Katniss forced her eyes away from the baffled people and onto the boy rushing towards her. She was vaguely aware of the arms pulling at her as she stumbled out of her bed and towards Peeta. A venomous, familiar voice rung loud and clear between her ears as she stormed across the room.

 _Should you ever come in contact with Peeta, your immediate response should be to end him. He has caused much suffering and lost of life. He has been given multiple opportunities and cease his actions, but has rejected them. Peaceful negotiation is no longer an option. You will not be judged if you were to kill Peeta. In fact, we would highly encourage it. Do you understand, Katniss?_

"I understand" she replied, pupils dilated.

One could not mistake the insanity in her eyes as her fingers curled around Peeta's throat.

. . .

The physical pain came as a side order, with it's mental counterpart serving as the main course. The sound of her frantic screams, the way she writhed on the floor as the drugs slowly coursed through her body had been permanently etched into his brain. The pain, the betrayal, the fear in her eyes after the deranged look had slipped away. And it didn't make it any better that Peeta had the entire population of District 13 bringing the damn thing up every five seconds. And when people weren't talking about it, they would just look at him expectantly, as if wondering how the star crossed lovers from District 12 would escape their latest hardship.

As if he wasn't already obsessing over the thought every second of the day.

Peeta was snapped out of his thoughts when his door opened and Finnick entered the room. A breath of relief escaped him as the District 4 tribute sank onto his bed. Aside from Prim, he was the only person that kept him from having a meltdown on a daily basis.

The two were quiet for a moment, just savoring the stark beauty of the thing that is silence before Peeta cleared the air. "Where's Annie" he asked, hoarsely. His throat had mostly recovered, though he still under strict orders to limit his speech.

A small smile danced across Finnick's face as he answered "Oh, she's just taking a bath." He sighed heavenly and closed his eyes for a second.

Peeta laughed softly as he draped a hand over his. It was nice to see him so happy. Like coffee, the emotion was hard to come by in Thirteen. "How is she?"  
"Oh, she's just fine. A little shocked, but I think she'll adjust quickly."

"Cant wait to meet her."  
"Oh, you'll just love her, Peeta". And then love sick expression slipped from his face. Peeta stiffened and prepared himself for what he knew was coming.

"I saw her today" Finnick whispered.

 _Here we go._ He sighed deeply and tried to get past the ache in his throat. "So, they're allowing her visitors now" he asked, suddenly interested in a thread of string dangling from his armpit. "I didn't, uh, think she was stable enough for that."  
He pursed his lips and rubbed the back of his head. "Well, I didn't _see her_ see her. I just looked at her through the glass."  
His heartbeat quickened. "How is she?" The pain in his throat had become unbearable now. He winced and tried to cover it to no avail. Finnick frowned, reached onto a table beside them and handed him a glass of water. After downing half of it, Peeta wiped his mouth on the back of his hand and sighed. "Thanks."

Finnick nodded and said "Well, she was asleep when I saw her. But they've got her strapped down to her bed, so I'm guessing she's... not... doing well."  
Peeta leaned his head against his pillow and tried to get past the dull ache in his chest. "Think they'd let me her?"

"Doubt it. They said it would be too much excitement. For the both of you."

"Finnick-"  
"Their words, not mine."

Peeta let the thread drop and forced himself to look at Finnick. "I have to see her." He continued before he could object. "I know she's not in the best shape right now, but you cant tell me that Snow has undone everything that happened between the two of us."

Finnick stared at him, sadly. "Peeta. That's not what I'm saying. The last thing I want is for you to think there's nothing you can do for her."

"Then help me see her. And not just from behind a glass. I need to talk to her. I need to see what damage they've done."

Finnick remained quiet for a few seconds. Then he stood and gave him a look. "I'll see what I can do." Then he walked away.

Peeta sighed and let himself sink into his bed. He didn't understand Finnick's words, didn't understand the look he had given him. He laid there in bed, pondering the question for nearly an hour before he finally realized what must have been going through his head. _He thinks I've already give up_. It struck him as funny that anyone could think he would ever lose faith in Katniss. Sure, her hijacking was unexpected, but that didn't mean he was ready to give up. After everything they'd been through, you would have thought people would have had a little more faith in them. Peeta went to sleep that night, reassured that they would be fine. Katniss was like a rubber band; she always snapped back. She could handle whatever life threw her way. And her love for Peeta? Undeniable. No one, not even the Capitol, could ever change that. Because Peeta and Katniss? They couldn't have been more perfect for each other.

And Peeta couldn't have been more wrong.

 **Hi, you guys! So, just gonna say it right now, I hated this chapter. I think it's pretty God-awful, don't you? I hate having to post it, but I had to or else the rest of the story wont make sense. Still not happy about it. Oh well. And I just had to throw Finnick in simply because I am infatuated with the very idea of that guy. Special thanks to Vampryelove21, , guest, Ella1983, babbs098, missycat470, rish22, KellyAnn96, Kmol15, Tkearns, and kimbaleena2002! You guys are AWSEOMESAUCE! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!**


	3. Minerva

**So, I'm trying this new thing where I'm more descriptive in my stories because I've gotten feedback that I'm not very good at that multiple times before. Is it noticeable? And I know the previous chapter said Peeta was going to see Katniss, but I figure she needs to interact with multiple people for a bit before they'll allow him clearance. Oh, and I'm going to do something in this chapter's that's gonna piss off everybody simply because it's the one thing I'm good at.**

Peeta had called it; Katniss wasn't being allowed any visitors. The only people allowed in her room-cell really- were her doctors. And she was barely cognizant of their presence, given that she spent every second of every day struggling not to succumb of the demon positioned in her gut. Even in her state of mind, she knew it was all in her head but sometimes... she could feel it stirring. Like a developing baby. At the center of her, the only thing in the world that truly mattered.

 _No_ , Katniss thought, hands grasping the sheets so tightly her knuckles turned white. _The exact opposite._ It was some sort of internal disease, eating her from the inside out until there was nothing left of her but a girl shrieking at monstrosities visible to her eyes only. Katniss forced her eyes closed and tried to control the tremors in her hands. They'd taken the IV out of her arm for the first time; she didn't want to make them question their decision. She drew in a large intake of air and leaned her head against her pillow. She tried not to think of the bruises from her restraints, tried not to think that people were observing her every move, tried not to think that she was being held in the same place of residence as the boy that had destroyed everything she every cared about-

"Katniss?"

Katniss jumped at the voice and looked around her wildly until her eyes landed on a figure standing before her. She blinked, confused, as the demon slowly began to retreat back in its cage. Her heart was beating rapidly, her hands were trembling uncontrollably, and there was a loud buzzing in her head. She stared at the person, breathing heavily, as she tried to make out a face.

"Come on, now. Don't look at me like that."  
Katniss frowned as the voice rang in her ears. The deep masculinity behind it. "G-Gale?" The high pitched sound dropped down a distant buzz. She reached out a shaky hand before quickly bringing it back and slamming it against her chest.

"Catnip" Gale tried again, softer. He offered her a cautious smile and sat at the end of her bed. "Come on. Look at me."  
Katniss shook her head and tried to avoid his eyes. "No, no, no, no, no."  
"What? I don't bite." He chuckled. "Unlike some people."

Her tremors slowly began to ease. Katniss gulped and looked up at him behind the curtain of the beast that was her hair. She wouldn't meet his eyes though. Instead, she focused on staring at his hand. Curious, she reached out again and took it in her own. It was so large compared to hers and scarred compared to hers. They did have one thing going for them, though. Katniss's hands were grey and limp. Stiff and cold. Gale's were glowing with life and strong; they showed signs of recovery.

"Katniss. Look at me."  
Katniss bit her lip and continued to examine the hand. How unrefined they were. And yet, its imperfection made it all the more flawless.

"Katniss" he said, more urgent. He reached out for her this time, then, seeming to have decided against it, he let his free hand fall to his side. He watched her marvel at the wonder that was his hand and offered a curt "I never knew you were this interested in my hands."

The brusque comment, however, seemed to go over her head. She only shrugged and carefully placed his hand on his leg. She patted it awkwardly, crossed her own hands in her lap, and stared at the floor.

Gale took a shaky breath and repeated himself once more. "Look at me."  
Katniss made a soft sound in her throat and shook her head. "No" she said, quietly.

He seemed shocked, sad even, at her tone. "Why not?"

Her breathing became rapid again. "B-Because you're not real."

Gale stared at her confusedly and listened as she explained.

"You're-You're just a... dream. No, no, not dream" she said to herself.

"Hallucination" he offered.

Katniss looked up and finally looked him dead in the eye, her own wide with fear. "I'm not crazy" she whispered.

Gale nodded slowly and said "I know", but in the way one accepts a present they secretly hate.

"I-I'm not" Katniss insisted. "I-I just know what they do now. I'm used to it. I really am. They-They make you think everything's fine-'you're safe now Katniss, no need to worry! You can relax now, it's okay'- then they-they change everything. And nothing's real." She grabbed his shoulders in a tight grip and said "Nothing is real."

He opened his mouth to say something then closed it. A minute passed before he smiled and laid a hand over her knee. "You remember that time you nailed that beehive?"  
She frowned in bewilderment. "What?"  
"The beehive" he laughed. Had Katniss not been on the verge of another meltdown, she would have realized that the laugh sounded a bit forced. "It was kind of sunny out, but there wasn't a lot of game, and I guess you were bored. You pointed out the hive and insisted you could nail it. "  
She stared at him, eyes wide. "Did I?"  
Gale's face tightened for a fraction of a second before he smiled again. "Oh, totally. Only the bees didn't appreciate it much. I spent like three weeks picking stingers out of my back."  
Katniss giggled as she felt herself relax. "Sorry."  
He smiled sadly and nodded. "It's fine. It was a long time ago, you know, before-" His eyes widened and he cut himself off, as if he'd made a grave mistake. One look at the girl before him confirmed his suspicions.  
"Before what?"

"Nothing. It's nothing. Hey, you remember how we got Prim's goat?"  
Katniss blinked as her eyes dilated violently. "Yeah" she murmured distantly. "Lady. She made good cheese. It tasted great on...bread."

Gale rose to his feet and took a hesitant step back. "Katniss."  
"It's his fault, isn't it" she hissed.

"This is Snow's fault" he nodded. "You're right, Katniss. This is Snow's fault. President Snow. Remember?"  
"Peeta tried to kill me. He made me think he loved me, and he tried to kill me. And when he couldn't, he tried to kill everyone I loved."

A door opened then, and Gale was gone. Katniss stared confusedly at the door before hurling herself at it. She slammed her fists against the wall in front of her and let out a scream. Her eyes glazed over and the buzzing was back. She continued to abuse the door for a few more seconds before eventually curling into a ball and pressing her hands against her ears. It seemed almost funny to her that this wasn't the first time she'd been in this position before. Not that she felt like laughing much.

. . .

Peeta scowled as Gale departed the room and walked over to him. "You weren't supposed to mention Snow" he said coolly.

Gale gave him an incredulous look. "She was slipping. I panicked. What did you expect me to do?"

"You knew what you were getting into. You were supposed to leave if she started up again."  
He glared at him and replied "It's not my fault she thinks you're a filthy mutt."

Peeta's eyes widened at the sneer. He was about to return the favor when the boy, man really, turned and stomped away. _That there is a boy on fire,_ he thought somberly.

Finnick laid a hand on his shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "Don't worry about it" he said.  
"You saw that" Peeta said quietly. "You saw the way her eyes lit up when she recognized him."  
"If she recognized you right now, the real you, she would have looked the same way."  
He stared through the glass at the girl thrashing around violently as the people in grey pinned her to the ground. Her eyes. So wide with fear and confusion.

"Still think they'll let me talk to her" he inquired.

Finnick sighed. "It'll take some convincing. But I think we can work something out." He turned Peeta around to face him. "You hear me? I'm not giving up on you two. Not now. Not ever. Understand?

"Course."

"Do you understand what that means" he asked, his eyes stern. "It means you cant give up on her either. Not even for a second. Because the moment you do, everything is going to go to hell. You get what I'm saying?"  
He nodded and felt his face heat up. Is that what he thought? Did he seriously doubt his undying love for her? After everything they had been through? He shook his hand off of his shoulder and sprinted away from him. The next thing he knew, he had locked himself away in a storage closet and was engulfed in darkness. Was this what it was like for Katniss? From the moment he declared his love for her on national television? Never knowing if you were projecting the correct amount of love? It took about half a second for him to decide he hated the feeling, and it took him another half of a second to decide he hated himself for leaving Katniss alone after the First Games to sort through her thoughts. He thought of their nights on the train, the way she clung to him as if she was afraid she'd slip away from him at a moment's notice. After losing her father, her mother's breakdown, and her now stiff relationship with Gale... was she afraid that he, too, would leave her?

Peeta groaned and leaned his head against the wall behind him. The coolness of it seeped beneath his skin and made him shiver, but he didn't mind. He liked the chilling feeling it left in his bones. He inhaled deeply and took in the scent of mop water and faint smell of soap.

Peeta was so wrapped up in his observations that he didn't even realize someone was approaching until the door was opened. He bit his lip to keep himself from gasping and sank further into the darkness as he studied the person above him. She was a thin, tall thing and looked to be about his age. She had soft red hair that fell over her shoulders in curls. She wore the unflattering District 13 uniform, though she had gone and altered it some. A few golden stars scrawled across it here and there. A moon. The sun. Teardrops. She was humming a song softly to herself as she reached forward to grab something from a shelf. One second later, a bottle of something fell on Peeta's head. There was no hiding the cry that escaped his lips.

The girl shrieked and dropped the books she'd been carrying with her. She blushed, bent down, and began to recover them.

"Oh, God" Peeta said, sheepishly. "Here let me help you with that." He began to pick up the scattered books.

"Oh, no, that's fine really." She spoke with a bit of an accent unknown to him. It sounded kind of broken and funny. _Country_ came to mind, but that didn't seem like an appropriate term.  
"No, let me help."

After a rather uncomfortable minute of Peeta insisting to help her and the girl insisting that she didn't need his help, the two started to crawl to their feet. Only for them to bump and sprawl to the floor. She groaned and covered her face with her hands.

Peeta merely laughed and recollected her books before handing them to her. Then, slowly, he crawled to his feet and rolled his shoulders back. "Hi."  
"Hi" she said, shyly.

"Um, did you need to get something?"  
She shuffled her feet and said "No, I just...sometimes, I hide out in here. When I want to be alone."

"Oh." An awkward silence settled between the two. Peeta cleared his throat and nodded at her bag of books. _Beyond the Stars, The Solar System, The Origin of the Cosmos, We Are Not Alone, The Big Book of Constellations_. "What, you plan to be an astronaut?"  
"Oh!" She giggled. "Well, I'm a bit of a bookworm; I've always loved reading, but I've always been interested in the cosmos. I love the idea of space and stars and the Big Bang and metaphysics and the celestial objects and whatnot. But I think I'm the only one who's really interested in the stuff, so I usually just keep to myself about it."

Peeta laughed at her rambling and shook his head. "What's your name?"

The girl brushed a lose strand of hair behind her ear and said "Minerva."  
He rose his eyebrows and said "Minerva. That's... different. I'm... well, I'm sure you already know."  
Minerva blushed once more and said "Sorry, I don't." Then she turned and looked around her, nervously. "I, um, I have to go. It was nice meeting you, though..."  
He stared at her, confused, until he realized she was expecting his name. "Oh! Peeta. My name's Peeta."  
She smiled and nodded. "It was nice meeting you, Peeta." And then she was gone.

 **Yeah, that's right I'm a jerk! Muwahahaha! HAVE A HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYBODY!**


	4. Katniss and Prim

**Sorry for the haitus. CLEAR apparently died or something, so my interent's been off for a few weeks. But I'm back!**

 **I'm a little rusty and out of ideas, so I'm trying something new: little tidbits of Peeta and Katniss's current relationship through the eyes of multiple characters. The next few chapters should revolve mainly around Prim, Finnick, and Gale. If that goes well, I might try a few other characters before reverting back to the Katniss/ Peeta POV.**

 **Enjoy.**

The doctors had been considering loosening the leash around Katniss; she had proved herself capable of adapting to changing enviornments. Her emotional outbursts had become almost non-existent. She had begun to smile and talk to her doctors. Her imprisonment had begun to be criticized. She had clearly recovered. There had even been talk of her starring in her first propo. Everything had started to fall into place. Her visit from Gale, though it raised some eyebrows, was wrote off as a mere relapse. The doctors called it "natural. Healthy even." Katniss was expected to have a full recovery.

And then she was expected to experience an escape from reality.

Nobody really knew what happened. Katniss, her observers reported, had appeared to be perfectly fine when they had left for the night. She had been writing in the composition notebook her pyschiatrist had provided her with, a comfortable smile on her face, when the last doctor had left. When they had arrived in the morning, they found a large portion of the pages in the notebook ripped out of the bindings and strewn across the room. Her bed had been flipped over. Her pillow had been ripped apart, coating the room with a small layer of feathers. In the corner of the room sat Katniss, rocking back and forward.

She had been quite calm, relatively speaking. Once you got past the fact that she was engaged in a conversation about peppermints with herself, of course. And the state the room was in. And the blood coating her hands. Her doctors' initial respone was to rush into the room and sedate her. The sudden presence of other beings, however, must have been a trigger, for Katniss's initial respone was to attack them. She had jumped onto the lead doctor and delivered a few blows to his face before a syrigne found its way into her arm and laid a blanket of unconciousness over her.

The doctors had been sure they had undone the damage the Capitol had inflicted upon Katniss. But now they were only convinced that there was no saving the Girl On Fire. Which of course brought up the most obvious question.

Who was?

...

All heads, of course, turned to Prim. Well, that's not true. All heads intially turned to Peeta before instantaneously ridding their thoughts of the idea. Even if the mere thought of the boy didnt send Katniss into a tailspin, it wasnt like Peeta was willing to see her anyway. He was far too busy with the propos. And when he wasnt preoccupied with those, he was with Minerva. Then all thoughts turned to Gale. This idea stuck for a far longer time than the Peeta suggestion (an entire two minutes). Then memories of his previous visit arose, and the thought was also rejected.

 _Then_ all heads turned to Prim.

The preteen had been surprised when Plutarch delievered the news that half of her _Reflection_ was now to be spent with her sister. It was certainly unexpected, though not unwelcomed. It had been close to four months, five if you count her time preparing for and fighting in the arena, since she had seen her sister. Prim could remember greeting Katniss after the first games. Well, greeting someone who sort of resembled Katniss. With the alterations made by the Capitol, the little girl had barely recognized her when she first arrived home. As Prim stood in front of the door of Katniss's room, she couldnt help but think if this would be anything like that.

"She's doing better."

She looked up and found Finnick standing next to her. Her first impression was that he was by far the most gorgeous thing she'd ever laid eyes upon. Her second impression was that he probably had ADHD, an ancient disorder they were covering in her med class.

Eyes dancing around the room, Finnick bit his lip and said "They say she hasnt had an episode in... a while." His hands were fidgeting.  
Prim narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms. "And how long is a while" she questioned.

He inhaled sharply and looked down. "About five hours."

The tension in her muscles relaxed a little. She'd rather have the truth than to go in there expecting showers of hugs and kisses and instead be severly disappointed. She offered a small smile and asked "Have you seen her?"

He continued smirked and said "If you can get through this visit without her losing it, they said they'll let me visit in a few days."  
Prim nodded and refocused her attention on the door in front of her. _Well_ , she thought, taking a deep breath. _Here goes._

She was smiling and singing a nonsensical song about squirrles and peppermints. She was laid out on the floor, her hair a tangled mess. She was playing with a knot of it and observing it oddly when Prim walked through. Katniss winced and shrunk back as the light from outside poured in. She blinked, once, twice, and stared ahead of her.

"Katniss" Prim offered in a small, shy voice she hadnt used in months. "Are you ok?"  
She cocked her head to the side and continued to gawk at her before the foggy look behind her eyes diminished. She took a deep breath and hurried across the room.

It was almost ironic how Prim ended up being showered in hugs and kisses.

 **Yeah, it's short and stupid. But I've been off FF for almost a month now. I've got a LOT of catching up to do on my favorite stories too, you know. And for anyone here from Omega, the next chapter WILL be out Sunday. Gurantee.**


	5. Dont Hate Me Cause I'm Mad

Katniss Everdeen. Victor of the Seventy-Fourth Hunger Games. The Girl On Fire. The Spark of the Second Rebellion. (Former) Lover of Peeta Mellark.

Once you ran through the list of all the things the seventeen-year-old had accomplished, all the pain and torture she'd been through, it was nothing short of heart-wrenching to see her like this; reduced to this pathetic and pitiful state: a frightened and borderline insane little girl who spends most of her days either talking to herself or staring blankly at the wall. You would not recognize her as the brave and stubborn girl she had previously been; the bruises licking her skin, the clouded-yet-petrified look in her sleepy eyes, the rigidness of her muscles, the way she jumped everything the door to her cell opened... they all told the story of a girl who has been severly damaged.

And unlikely to truly recover.

These were the things Katniss's doctors threw at Finnick as they prepped him on what to expect out of the maniacal thing on the other side of the door. Even though he already knew most of what they were telling him, it still hit him like a sharp slap across his face. This was it. This was the moment he was going to see her. The moment he was going to see whatever remained of the snappy child he had met during his second term in the hunger games. Finnick inhaled deeply and nodded as the people in grey reminded him one last time to keep it censored as he pushed the door open.

She was sitting on the ground, her eyes focused on the sheet of paper in front of her. Beside her sat a small box of crayons. It had been knocked over and was spilling five of six abandoned wax pastels onto the ground. Katniss was murmuring to herself, her eyes cloudy but focused. She didnt seem aware that she was no longer alone.

Finnick stared at the strange girl and sighed. Despite knowing her recovery prompted by Prim's visit, he had expected a far worse scene. Something along the lines of bloody hand prints covering the walls as Katniss ran around the room, screeching like a madman. But no; there was none of that. There was only a girl coloring in what appeared to be... not quite happiness but... contempt.

Slowly, Finnick made his way toward the girl until he was standing directly behind her. He peered over her shoulder and rose an eyebrow, staring at the picture looking up at him. It was the sloppy child-like portrait of a family. They all had heads too big for their stick bodies and blobs with small ticks for hands. Despite the awful artistic abilities, however, Finnick couldnt help but smile sadly. There was a man, a woman, and a little girl in between them. In the arms of the man was a small baby. They all had big red smiles on their faces.

Finnick cleared his throat then.

Katniss jumped, let out a yelp, and turned around to face him, crayon raised menancingly.

"Hey, hey, it's cool" he said, arms up in surrender.

She continued to stare at him, eyes glazed over in fear and confusion, before she asked in a shaky voice, "Who?"

He frowned and pointed to himself. "Me?"  
She nodded, hand tremling as it clenched the crayon.

"Finnick" he said, offering her a smile he hoped was reassuring. It must have been, for the tension in her muscles eased slightly. "You remember me, don't you?"

Katniss shook her head and used her other hand to massage her temple distractedly. "No."  
Finnick fought to keep the smile from slipping off of his face. "No?"

She shrank back, seemingly remorseful for her memory loss. "I'm sorry" she said, quietly. She stared at her feet and let the crayon fall to the floor.

He chuckled softly. "That's okay. I'm not mad."  
"...I am." She spoke so softly that he almost missed it.

Almost.

Then, just as fast as it came, it was gone. She looked up at him and smiled shyly. "Wanna draw?"

Finnick, still taken aback by her previous comment, stared at her with wide eyes. "Um...sure."

Katniss smiled again and slowly lowered herself onto the floor. She dumped the remaining contents of the crayon box out onto the floor and divided them equally; she handed Finnick a blue, red, and orange crayon before staring down at her picture.

"What are we drawing" he asked.

She shrugged as she began to draw a clumsy sun above the family. "Can you draw some trees?"

In all honesty, Finnick was about as good a drawer as Katniss, and that wasn't saying much. But he just didn't have the heart to admit it. The look of fierce concentration on Katniss's face showed that, even though it looked like a lousy kindergarten sketch, she had put a lot of work into that drawing. And even though she clearly didn't remember him, she looked like she really trusted him. She would have been crushed if he rejected her. So, putting his own thoughts aside, Finnick scribbled a few trees around the beaming family. Katniss giggled and pulled out a green crayon before dragging it across the paper, creating a sort of grassland around them.

Finnick continued to draw his scraggly trees as he listened to the sounds of happiness coming from the girl, a cloud of gloom hanging over his shoulder. He was relieved that Katniss was getting better, but it didn't seem to him that she actually was getting better. He hadn't gotten to know her much, but he knew just from looking at her that she was not the type to giggle. As the minutes ticked by, Finnick felt his chest begin to tighten. Recovery. How could they call this recovery? It was true that no one truly knew who the Girl On Fire was, not even the Girl On Fire, but you didn't have to be a brain surgeon (which some of them actually were!) to know that something was wrong. This was not their Girl On Fire. This was not the Star Crossed Lover from District 12. This was not the girl who volunteered to take her sister's place in the Hunger Games.

This was not Katniss Everdeen.

"Who?"

Finnick looked up and turned to face Katniss, who had her eyes clenched shut, perspiration running down the side of her head. "What?"  
"Who...Who are you?"  
"Finnick."  
She shook her head in clear agitation. "No. _Who_ are you?"

Finnick rose an eyebrow. "Um...I...I don't understand the question. What?"  
"How do I know you" she hissed, eyes flying open.

He bit his lip and averted his eyes to the drawing, trying desperately to think of a safe explanation. But try as he might, he couldn't come up with a single idea that didn't revolve around their meeting during the Seventy Fifth Hunger Games. He gulped and felt his hands began to twitch.

Katniss noticed his reaction and the intensity in her glare eased up slightly. "How do I know you" she asked, softer.

Finnick looked towards the wall where he knew roughly twenty people were observing him, tapping his earpiece. Did they not hear what she was asking him? Did they not know that this could possibly be a trigger for her? He sighed and forced his hands into his pockets to reduce the shaking. _Well_ , he thought taking a deep breath. _We cant keep it from her forever._

"What do you know about the Hunger Games?"

. . .

 _Meanwhile~_

Peeta stared at the glass, watching as Finnick began to tell Katniss a story. He wasn't sure what they were talking about, seeing that the glass was sound proof, but he could guess from the tense look on Haymitch's face that it probably wasn't something he was supposed to be discussing. He paced around for a bit, growing more and more curious by the second, before he let out a sigh and walked over to the victor.

"What's going on in there" he questioned.

Haymitch merely keep his eyes on the glass. "He's telling her some stuff."  
Peeta rose an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "Stuff like what?"

He shrugged and pressed against his earpiece. "Snow. The Rebellion. The Games-"  
He scoffed. "That's ridiculous. Isn't that like some sort of trigger for her? Why would he even think about-"  
"You?"

He froze and stopped, mid-ramble. "Me?"  
"No, the Easter Bunny. Yes, you."

Peeta frowned in confusion. "Me" he repeated. "Why-Why would they be talking about me. That's worse than them talking about the Games! And why are you allowing this to happen!"

Haymitch rolled his eyes. "Her doctors gave us the all clear. In fact, they insisted. They want to know how she's going to react to this, so they can see how her recovery's actually going."  
"Yeah but-"  
"And besides" he continued accusingly. "You should be happy Finnick's trying to get that girl to see you for who you really are. I mean, you are supposed to be in love with her, right? Isnt that what you've been saying for the past year? That you love her? That you've always loved her? That you always will love her? _Always_?"

Peeta blushed and looked away.

His silence, and therefore confirmation of his betrayal, seemed to infuriate Haymitch. "So that's how it is huh" he spat. "You give up on her the moment things get a little too hard and throw yourself after the first girl you lay eyes on?"  
He stared at him in pure hatred. "What are you talking about" he muttered.

"You know damn well what I'm talking about." He sighed and took his earpiece off. "We made a deal" Haymitch said, looking him in the eye. "We promised that we would look after Katniss."  
"Oh, yeah" Peeta snorted. "And look at how good we're doing." He turned away from him and faced the glass. Katniss had her hands over her ears, shaking her head. "She's a mess."  
Haymitch shrugged and pointed at the bags under the boy's eyes. "We all are."

"..."  
"Look" the alcoholic started. "I know you're afraid. I know you're afraid of helping her because you're worried you're going to lose her again. But that's not a good enough reason to shut her out like this. Katniss needs you Peeta, now more than ever." He said this last part with a pained expression before continuing. "You cant just isolate her. Not again."  
Peeta turned around then, befuddlement written clear across his face. "Again?"  
"Before the games when you asked for separate training. During the games when you thought you could protect her by abandoning her. After the games when you left her to the mercy of her nightmares because she did what she had to do to survive. Preparing for the Second Games when you barely even acknowledged her. During the Second Games when you made her choose between your life and your own." His voice had been rising as he listed off example after example, and suddenly, Peeta was grateful Haymitch had asked for the two to observe the conversation alone. He didn't think he'd ever live down the shame of being publically chewed out by a drunk.

"I'm done with Katniss" Peeta finally said, surprised at how relieved he felt saying those words. "I did say I loved Katniss. And I meant what I said. But this isn't Katniss. This is some... defective _mutt_ the Capitol's created. And I just cant... I cant forgive her."  
"Forgive her for what, Peeta" Haymitch yelled in exasperation. "Forgive her for trying to save _your_ life! Forgive her for trying to do the right thing!"

He stared at him for a bit and said "I don't know. I just cant." And with that, he took one last look at the glass before exiting the room.

. . .

"He tried" Katniss sobbed. "He tried to kill me. I know he did. I was there!"

Finnick shook his head, stubbornly. "No, no he didn't. That was just the Capitol messing with your head."

She stared at him though tear-filled eyes. "So, what, he loves me?"  
"Yes!"  
"Oh, really?" She clenched her fists.

"Yes, that's what I've been trying to tell you. He's head over heels for you!"  
"So why hasn't he tried to see me then" she asked. "Huh? And why is he chasing after that redhead?"

Finnick faltered, eyes wide. "How did you-"  
"I have ears" she whispered. "I can hear what my doctors are saying, even when they shoot me up with that stuff."

There was the distinct sound of someone talking then and Finnick leaned his head to the side before standing. "Katniss" he said softly. "I have to go."  
The smug look fell off her face and was replaced with one of guilt before her face turned into a snarl.

Finncik quickly made his way towards the door and then she was alone.

Again.

Katniss took her shoes off and hurled them at the door before crashing down against the floor. She looked beside her then and found herself staring at the picture. She'd been working on the drawing for about two weeks now. Every time she showed it to her doctors, they smiled and praised her and told her it was a very lovely piece. And she had believed them. But now, as she wrestled against the being rising from her stomach, she saw the picture for what it truly was. An unrealistic self portrait of a family that has been through hell in back drawn by the hand of a mentally disturbed little girl. Katniss screamed, snatched it off the ground, and began to rip the picture into a tiny million pieces. Then, when that was done, she took all of her crayons and broke them into near inexistence. Then she crumpled to the ground once more and curled herself into a ball. She wasn't even aware of the sound of her door opening once more until someone had taken her into their arms. She didn't even have the strength to fight back against them. She just allowed herself to be wrapped in their arms and rocked softly.

"It's okay, sweetheart" Haymitch whispered, voice thick with emotion. "I'm here now."

Katniss didn't know how long they sat there. She just knew that, for the first time in a long time, she wasn't being left alone to her thoughts. Just knew that Haymitch was shushing her softly and whispering "It's okay". After a while, he managed to eventually get her to calm down to the point where she was silently weeping. Then he got her to the point where she was just staring at the wall blankly. And for a moment or two, Haymitch was actually worried he somehow broke the girl because she wasn't saying anything.

Then, after what felt like an eternity, she finally spoke.

"He hates me."

He sighed softly and gently patted her hair. "I know. I know."

"But why" she asked. "I'm the one that should hate him. _He_ tried to kill _me_."  
Haymitch's unwavering face made Katniss frown.

"Unless...unless he didn't."  
He shook his head.

She looked down then and noticed her hands were trembling. Sighing deeply, she closed her eyes and tried not to think too hard.

"Come on now" Haymitch insisted. "Peeta couldn't hurt a fly."

Thoroughly confused, Katniss looked up at the man above her. "So...I _tried_ to kill him."

"What? Oh, good lord, no!"

Katniss let out an deep _huff_ in irritation. "Then why is he mad at me?"

Haymitch looked away. "I think he's afraid to see you...like this."

"..."  
"..."

"Haymitch" Katniss whispered, eyes wide with fear.

"Yeah?"

"...Don't hate me cause I'm mad."

He looked at her sadly and pulled her closer to him. "I wont."  
"...Promise?"  
"I promise."

 **Can you tell me which of my stories those last two lines came from?**


	6. 12

**Sorry for the break you guys! I've been trying to post this chapter, and it kept turning out shitty, and I didnt want to do that to you guys! That and I've been stressing over finals.**

 **Warning: Contains PTSD and may or may not be triggering. I realize I probably didn't capture the real thing, NOT MEANT TO BE OFFENSIVE, MY APOLOGIES IF IT IS!**

Peeta left after that.

No, he didnt quit the rebellion; with the unruly uprisings taking place and the Capitol executing anyone who bears any resemblance to him, the chances of him surviving out in the wilderness on his own were little. But there was no mistaking the look in Peeta's eyes that he needed to get out of the District. Even if the only alternative wasnt much of an improvement either.

Which was how he ended up standing in the center of District 12. Or what was left of it anyway.

Peeta hadnt been there when the bombs had gone off (obviously), so he had no idea what he was in for. And in the few weeks that followed his capture, he had been too strung out on drugs and rage at Katniss's "misfortune" to really grasp what happened to his home. Then Katniss was returned and tried to kill him, and everything else just didnt seem to matter anymore. Most of his day was occupied with meetings and classes and prop filming anyway, so it wasnt like he had to try very hard to avoid certain topis.

But now there was nothing to distract him. No one to report to. No one to check in on. No one to pretend for. No raging girl to secretly hate. Out here he was all alone, save for the hulking metal beast hovering quite noticeably overhead. But aside from that, it was just Peeta.

Well, Peeta and the remains of these unknown corpses.

He took great caution not to step on any body parts, even though Coin had warned him prior to the trip that would be next to impossibly (which was probably another reason for her reluctance to send him, now that he thought about it). But even with his wariness, evey once in a while, Peeta found himself squashing the pitiful residue around him. The thought, and sound, made his head swim and his stomach churn. Groaning softly, he forced himself to sit down. For just a minute. Then he'd find it.

And maybe then, he'd finally be able to let her go.

Peeta crouched lowly and brought his knees closer to him, taking a sharp and sudden deep breath. It was a lot to take in, that was for sure. And when you still haven't quite recovered from a mild concussion, that just made things all the more difficult. Peeta inhaled once more and tried to calm himself. _I am safe,_ he snapped at himself. _I am sane. I am healthy! Nothing is wrong with me; there is nothing to be afraid of!_

But there was. There was a lot to be afraid of. Like the screams around him. The panicked bodies rushing towards the forest in a frenzy as the bombers appear overhead. Peeta remained sitting down but craned his head back and stared at the sky as death rained from above. The first bomb went off and suddenly, there was no sound. Only sight, which he quickly wished he didn't possess either. Peeta watched as a little boy, no older than eight, was thrown to the ground and, in the panic, was trampled to death. He watched as a an old woman holds a young man, grandson probably, in her feeble arms and whispered something to him repeatedly. Then the rain came down and they were gone to. Peeta covered his eyes with his hands and murmured softly "no, no, no, no."

Then there was sound again; there was crackling in his ear and, for a second, he thought the bombs were coming down on him. Then he heard Finnick's soft and worried voice and eased up. "Peeta? Everything okay down there, kid?"  
Peeta frowned in confusion before he whispered "Don't you see?"  
The District 4 victor sounds almost as confused as he feels. "See what?"  
"The bombs."  
"...Bombs?"  
"They're killing everyone" Peeta said quietly, sadly.

Finnick remained silent for a moment before he said "Oh, I get it. Peeta, I need you to listen to me for a second. Okay? Can you do that for me?"  
He nodded, even though he knew their visual on him wasn't that sharp.

"Okay. There are no bombers."  
"But-"

"No 'buts', Peeta. _There are no bombers_ " he said sternly.

"But I can see them."  
"I know. I know you see them. But they're not real." He sighed before continuing. "You remember when you first got back from the Games? The first time, I mean?"  
"Yes" he replied, shakily.

"And remember the nightmares? Come on now. I know you've had them; we all have them... some more than others."

Peeta winced, knowing he was referencing to Katniss, but chose to ignore him. "Yeah, what about them?"  
"Well, remember how real they seemed? Remember how it seemed like you were actually back in the arena? Even though, at the time anyway, that was impossible? And remember how you always woke up and realized you were okay."  
The tension in his shoulders relaxed. "Yeah?"  
"Well, this is like that. It's time to wake up, Peeta. So wake up.

Peeta remained curled into a ball.

"I know it's hard. I know it's scary. But you have to trust me. There is nothing there. I'm looking right at you. You're perfectly fine."  
"How don't I know you're just saying that?"  
Finnick sighed once more. "Peeta, why would there be people in Twelve" he asked, clearly trying to be patient. "Think. All of the survivors are in Thirteen."  
He frowned at that. He did have a point there. Slowly, he peeked through the space between his conjoined arms and stared out, breathing heavily.

And saw nothing.

He frowned some more and dropped his arms to his sides. Nothing. Still moving with caution, Peeta forced himself to stand and looked around him.

"There you go" Finnick said, his voice cheery. "See? Nothing's there."  
Peeta let go of the breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. Then he saw the buildings caving in around him. "You're right. There really is nothing here."  
There was a pause on the other line and some crackling before Haymitch's voice boomed at him. "You still wanna do this? We can have the team go down and pick you up if you want."  
He shook his head. "No" he said, his voice still shaky. "I need to do this. I just..." He trailed off, unsure of how to finish.

But that was okay. Haymitch seemed to understand. "I know, Peeta. I know."  
. . .

The bakery was in ruins.

In all honesty, Peeta had felt the wind knocked out of him when he stumbled across the bakery. If this wasn't so traumatizing and unbelievably disturbing, it would have been funny how often this visit had his pulse racing. You would think after seeing the footage and the reports and stories from the survivors that he would have known what eh was in for. But there was something those second and third-hand accounts never told you; how the emotional and psychological wounds never truly heal after seeing your home demolished in mere seconds.

And seeing the aftermath of such a catastrophe was no picnic either.

The door was hanging on its hinges, so Peeta had to lift it up and chuck it aside to get into the bakery. Then, once that feat was accomplished, he had to chuck aside other miscellaneous debris, always careful to examine said debris before touching it. It took all of about fifteen to twenty minutes of this before the District 12 victor finally realized he was not clearing himself a path but returning the bakery to its pervious shape. He had swept the broken jars that once held candy and such near the corner underneath their shelves, dusted off the crashed in counter, stacked sacks of flower underneath a table that had lost one leg, and lit a fire in the furnace. The fire brought some warmth to his numb fingers, even though the cold wasn't too burdensome. Peeta rubbed his hands together before thrusting them into his pocket and observing the "newly refurbished" room in front of him. The sight was so pitiful that it only encouraged him to turn around and walk outside.

And stare.

 _Maybe things would be different,_ Peeta thought as he stared at what he knew where pig carcasses and not people carcasses. _If I had just threw that bread at those damn pigs. Maybe then she would have killed me in the arena, and I wouldn't feel like this right now._ He drew in a deep breath and detected the smell of burning wood and the faint scent of cinnamon. He let the aroma wash over him and sank onto the floor, staring ahead as he tried to imagine what it felt like to be among the ash and dust. A soft yellow-orange covered the bakery as the sun rose. Peeta looked up and stared at the firey thing trying, and failing, to peek through the clouds. He clenched his fists and watched as it was overcome by the white curtain.  
His chest tightening, Peeta shook his head and quietly asked the Sleeping "How do I do this? How do I save someone who cant be saved?"  
"..."

"Where do I go from here?"  
There was some static from his earpiece before Finnick said "Peeta? They're ready for you now? They need you out of the bakery", thinking he had been talking to him.

Peeta sighed and crawled to his feet and walked back into the bakery, without looking back. On his way out the door, he cocked his head to the side as his eyes landed on an apron. Along the breast, his father's name was stitched across in fancy cursive. The feeling in his chest intensified, but he didn't hesitate to grab it on the way out.

Maybe it was the fact that he could finally let Katniss go or the fact that he had his father's apron, but the flight back to Thirteen was far more comfortable than the ride there.

 **Special thanks to FAIRY WITH WINGS (badass name and TOTALLY agree with you!), guest, domUNIQUE, guest, vampyrelove21, guest, Another percabeth lover, Ella1983, JustInLoveWithFairyTail, PeetaKatnissEverLark, Times New Writer (Times New Roman?), Wolvestein I, babbs098, imagineadream, missycat470, rish22, Emilee Amethyst (Steven Universe!), Everlarkdiehard, Indie-Girl-7, KellyAnn96, Kmol15, SasoTheGreat, Tkearns, XenaTheDog, blacker875, , griffindork93, honeyduck, kimbaleena2002, and theordinarity.**

 **OH BTW! If anyone has any great neko (cat-girl, incorrectly labeled as catboys sometimes) fanfics, PLEASE let me know. They're my latest obsession!**


	7. Gale and Peeta

Peeta wasn't one to complain. When you grow up in a place where death by starvation is as common as the common flu and fresh bread and greens could be considered a feast, being picky isn't even an option; you either ate what was on your plate or died because of your stubbornness.

But even so, the tribute had been in for a rude awakening when he arrived in District 13 and saw the menu: slop on bread or slop in a bowl, your pick. Initially, Peeta had refused to eat either. But as the days passed and his hunger grew, he eventually did cave in. It wasn't as bad as it looked, but it was exactly as good as it looked. Nevertheless, his stomach did begin to appreciate the slop, usually favoring slop in a bowl. Soup, they called it. And as days turned into weeks, which turned into months, he found himself waking up some mornings with his mouth watering at the thought of his awaiting "soup".

But when Peeta came back and discovered Gale had caught a deer and a few rabbits, all the tolerance he'd built up in his time spent there quickly flew out the window; he was among the first ones in line, behind Finnick and Annie. He smiled at the couple and shook Annie's hand. She wasn't looking at him when they preformed the gesture, but she did smile, which he took as a good thing.

"Isn't this great" Finnick asked as the three walked over to a table. "Hot meat. Never thought I'd be so happy to see it."

"Well, you're not alone in that" Peeta chuckled, taking a seat. He grabbed his fork to stab the slice of meat into his mouth when he felt someone tapping his shoulder.

"Hey there, handsome" Johanna said, smiling wide. "Mind if I sit here, or is this seat reserved for someone?"

Peeta rolled his eyes and smiled. "Naw, you can sit here."

She nodded and slid into the seat. "Hey, Anne."

Annie stared at her for a second, confusedly, before a smile broke out on her face. "Joey" she said, her voice soft yet excited. "Hi." She turned to Finnick and tugged at his shirt sleeve. "Joey's here."

Finnick smiled and said "Hey, Johanna. It's nice to see you."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever" she said before adding, quickly, "Nice to see you too."

Annie smiled and reached over the table and grabbed her hand. Then she laid it over Finnick's. "Joey" she said. "This my Finnick." Her smile expanded as a blush brushed over her face. "My Finnick. He's good."

"I remember, Annie. We've met before, remember?"

She nodded before looking down and shoving a spoonful of gravy and meat into her mouth.

Peeta smiled and listened as Finnick kept their group laughing with his crazy stories from home; it was nice to just sit down and relax sometimes. To just eat and have a good laugh every once in a while. To forget about everything and let go.

To forget about the girl walking towards him.

Peeta had been so absorbed in eating his soup that he didn't even notice Katniss, the two securit guards, and Gale until the two were about ten spaces away. He took in a rather sudden take of air and caught the attention of his table. The three victors frowned and turned to look his way and froze when they saw Katniss. Well, all except Annie, who waved her hand in the air and called out "Kitty!"

Katniss froze in her place when she saw the group, her expression blank but frustrated. Then she turned and looked up at the three men escorting her, who gave her a brief nod. She turned back around and, taking slow steps, made her way over to the table, keeping an iron grip on Gale's arm.

Annie scooted over on the bench and smiled at Katniss. "Hello."

She gave her an odd look before nodding and saying "Hello...Annie." Then she saw the way she was holding Finnick's hand and cocked her head. "Who's... Who's this?"

"Finnick."

Finnick offered a smile. "Good to see you're out...and about."

She shrugged. "My doctors thought it might be good for me to spend some time with old friends."

Johanna gave her a look. "What type of friends?"

Katniss frowned and stuttered. "I-I dunno. Good friends?"

Finnick gave Johanna a look and shook his head. "Cut it out, Johanna."

"What, I just wanna know if they've given up on the whole star-crossed lovers mess or if they're still stringing in along" she defended before turning back to the Distrcit 12 victor. "So?"

Katniss paled and uncharacteristically sank into her chair, avoding eye contact. "So what?"

"Are you and Peeta still lovers or-"

"No" Peeta cut in.

Everyone turned to him. Everyone aside from Katniss, who had focused all her attention on her bowl of soup.

"I just dont see, given everything that's happened, how that's going to work out" he explained.

"And how would you know about everything's that happened" Gale replied cooly, his eyes narrowed. "You dont even bother to come see her."

"It's fine, Gale" Katniss said softly. "It's really okay. He's right. It wont work out, especially now that he has a girlfriend."

Peeta dropped his spoon as he was shoving it into his mouth and stared wide eyed at the troubld girl. "What?"

"We cant be in love in you love somebody else."

"Well, you did it just fine, between Gale and me."

"WHO WANTS SECONDS" the chef suddenly yelled from the kitchen.

"I do" Finnick declared. "Annie, would you like seconds?"

She frowned and said "No, I am fine-"

He gestured his eyes towards Peeta and Katniss and Gale and rose his eyebrows.

"Actually" she said quickly. "Seconds sound very lovely. Joey would you care to join us?"

"Naw, I'm good" she said, smirking. "I wanna see how this plans out."

Finnick snatched her by her hand and quickly lead her and Annie away, leaving a bitter Peeta and Gale and a confused and slightly hurt Katniss behind.

Katniss stared at Peeta, not comprehending.

"Come on, Katniss. You cant look me in the eye and tell me you dont love him."

"I love Gale like a brother" she admitted.

He rolled his eyes and bitterly said "Right."

"What is wrong with you" Gale butt in.

"What's wrong with you" he bit back. "You're just sitting here and pretending like this is going to work when you know she's still messed up."

"And you're just sitting there and pretending like she doesnlt even exist! You do realize she has ears, don't you?"

"Gale, can we just go" Katniss asked, her eyes getting cloudy.

Gale gave her a look over and sighed. Then he turned around and waved a hand in the air. The two security guards walked over and waited, expectantly. "Can you take her back to her cell-er, I mean room?"

They nodded and watched as Katniss stood.

"I'll come see you later, okay?"

Katniss nodded and sadly walked away, her manacles clinking as she went.

"All right" Gale said, turning to face him. "You need to get a grip."

Peeta sighed and pushed his bowl away. "No, you need to get a grip. Katniss is gone. There's nothing left for me to save, so why are still asking me to fight for her?"

"Because there is still a Katniss worth fighting for. And the longer you put off helping her, the worse she's going to get. You saw how she reacted to you today. If that had been the old Katniss, she would have been snapping at you. Instead, she just sat there and took it because she doesn't remember who she is."

"And I'm suppoed to know" he scoffed. He took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Gale, I don't want to argue with you. Despite everything that's happened, I dont have a problem with you. It's just... this whole mess has helped me realize just how stupid I was. I was convinced that Katniss and I had this unbreakable bond, this powerful relationship. But the truth is, we're just different people. Especially now; whatever shred of a chance we had, it's gone now that she's like this."

Gale stared at him sadlly."You're wrong, you know" he said, shaking his head. "You have no idea how wrong you are. You have no idea what's going on with Katniss."

"Oh, and I guess you would?"

"No, I cant say that I do. No one can. But you? You might be her last hope, Peeta."

Gale stood up and turned to leave but paused at the last minute. "I know she's different. I know it's hard to see her like this. But I need you to trust me when I say she's still in there. Waiting for you to find her."

And then he was gone.


	8. Minerva's Prediction

**Review. Seriously, please review. Even if it's hate, I'll take it! Here, I'll start you off: bruh, your plot consistency sucks!**

 **Warning: contains events revolving around religion. I dont mean to offend anyone, but there is tarot reading and wannabe fortune teller in this chapter.**

Contrary to popular belief, Peeta didn't technically abandon Katniss. Well, he wasn't fighting for her anymore, but that didn't mean he had given up on her altogether. He still thought about her a lot. Katniss, in spirit, usually visisted him late at night, when the lights were off and he was supposed to be sleeping. Sometimes, he thought about when she had attacked him; the way her calloused and blood-caked hands had wrapped themselves around her neck. The way she had falied about when Gale first visited her. The way she had once stared through the glass in his direction, her eyes full of fear and hope and misery, as if she could see him.

Usually, though, he dind't think about the ferale girl curled into a ball that was, as her doctors had once noted, exhibiting depressed and even suicidal tendencies. Instead, he thought about the girl who, against all odds, had brought a family back together when her mother couldn't. The girl who, when challenged, could have such raw and intense passion in her eyes that it could probably burn a whole through someone's cranium. The girl who, when her life had been threatened, only thought about protecting her loved ones. The girl who used to love him.

Peeta sighed and sat up before he began to pace across the room. Maybe he had given up on her too soon. Maybe he had bailed when things got a little too tough. If Katniss had been in his position, surely she would have stuck around longer. And even if she hadn't, she would have instead been doing something productive with her life instead of just sitting there on her ass. He closed his eyes and stared at the ceiling of his room, his head pounding. _Maybe,_ he thought. _Maybe I'll go se her tomorrow. Just to see how she's doing. I wont actually talk to her. I'll just...go see her._

. . .

"Haymitch?"

Haymitch groaned and shifted on his bed. He pulled the covers over his head when the door opened and light spilled in from the hallway. "Piss off" he snapped.

"Come on, it's important."

He snatched his pillow and threw it backin the direction of the voice. "The day doesn't start for another two hours. So dont expect me to do squat for another six. And even then, I wouldn't advise coming in here."

"Haymitch" the voice said, suddenly impatient.

Haymitch sighed and sat up and found Peeta standing in his doorway. "You better have a damn good reason for waking me up this early-"

"I wanna see Katniss."

He rose an eyebrow. "Okay."

He gaped at him. "Seriously?"

"You're the one that exhiled yourself from her. You could have visited her any want. We're working on expanding her visitor's list, but they'd let you in for sure."

Peeta stared at him, perplexion written across his face. "And why is that?"

"She's actually been improving these last few weeks."

"Yeah, I heard they were letting her walk around without her shackles unsupervised."

"Come on, you're smarter than that. The idea is to make her think we trust her when in reality we've got some people in disguise watching her in case something triggers her."

He nodded, though his face was still set in confusion. "Okay, so what does that have to do with me? Have you guys convinced her I'm not trying to kill her?"

"Yes and no" Haymitch replied as he stood up. He walked over to his dresser and pulled out a shirt before pulling it over his head. "I think we've got her convinced that you're not dangerous, but she still thinks you're something from the Captiol. Only now they're using this drug on her that makes her more afraid of everything." When all he got was a blank look, he continued. "Well, it's certainly an improvement over her watching to break everything she sees."

Peeta sighed and leaned against the wall. He took his head in his hands and tried to control his breathing. "Okay. Okay, okay, okay. So that means...I can see her, but I wont be able to actually see her?"

Haymitch reached for a belt but stopped suddenly. "Do you want to" he said, looking in the mirror to see him.

He averted his eyes and felt a blush falling over his cheeks. "No, of course not. I just wanna make sure she's...doing okay. Well, better, I mean."

He nodded solemly then said "I'll see what I can do. Getting you permission to enter shouldn't be too hard, but rememeber people aren't exactly on Team Peeta right now. You might get more than a few dozen dirty looks. So just try to draw as little attention to yourself as possible and only speak if neccesarry."

Peeta crossed his arms but couldn't help but be relieved. He felt like an enormous weight had been lifted off of his shoulders.

. . .

"None of this is your fault."

Peeta looked up from his sketcbook and rose an eyebrow at Minerva, who was sitting cross-legged on her bed.

"You're blaming yourself" she said. "For what happened to Katniss."

"Anyone ever told you you could be a pyschiatrist?"

She smirked before her face became stoic again. "I'm serious, Peeta. The amount of stress that's been radiating off of you these last few days is practically tangible. Your aura has been very blue lately."

"I thought space and whatever was your calling, not the human psyche."

She rolled her eyes. "Cosmology is my hobby. Divinatuion and spirituality are more of an ocupation. But you're missing my point."

Peeta let his blonde curls fall in his eyes. "I just...dont wantt to talk about it, okay? It's bad enough just thinking about it."

Minerva smiled sadly. "You cant go through life blaming yourself for every bad thing that happens. If you do..." She paused and closed her eyes for a minute before opening them once more. "Your aura will be as washed out and grey as a dingy old washcloth. You catch my drift?"

"Not really, no" he confessed.

"If you let every bad event in your life get to you, you'll find yourself counting how many days you have left."

"I know. I just...I know it's not my fault that Katniss got captured by Snow. And I know it's not my fault that she hates me. But it is my fault that I haven't donr anything about it." When he didnt get a reply, he looked up.

MInerva shrugged. "Well, you're not wrong."

Peeta chuckled and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, but you didn't have to agree with me."

"What, you want me to lie?"

"Yes."

He laughed some more before his watch started beeping. "Duty calls" he sighed, standing up. He held his hand out and said, quite dramatically, "Give me a reading, my great fortune teller."

Minerva accepted his hand and turned it so that his palm was facing up. She ran her fingers over his palm and closed her eyes and they skittered over the lines, breathing slowly. "I just started this reading, so I might be a little off."

"I don't care. I just need something to calm my nerves."

"You disrespect my art" she muttered. "Alright, you're too tense. This isnlt gonna work out."

He sighed. "Now what?"

She reached under her bed and pulled out a black bag. "Now" she said, her eyes excited. "Now we turn to the Tarot Cards. Paul Christian's Egyptian Tarot, to be exact. I've been waiting to try these things out. Okay." She pulled a card deck out of the bag and held them out in her hand. "All right, now pick a card that shall determine your destiny. Only three per customer and choose wisely, for this card may very well alter your life."

Peeta reached for and carefully grabbed three cards out of her hand. He turned them over and eyed them curiously.

"Which ones did you get" she asked, her face suddenly serious.

"I'm not sure." When he saw her face, he smirked. "I know you think my 'aura' is ad and depressed, but you're overeacting. I'm gonna be fine."

"Yeah, but tarot reading isn't always satisfactory. And given your aura, I'd say your've got some pretty bad cards."

He rolled his eyes and looked down again. "Okay, lets see. Um... The Fool, the Star, and the Devil." He sat the cards down softly and looked down at his watch. "Look, I should get going. Haymitch is gonna lose his pants if I dont get down there. Tell me what they mean when I come back, okay?"

Minerva stared down at the cards. "But...those weren't good cards."


	9. Katniss Meets Peeta

**I felt like a jerk for making you guys wait a whole week for the previous update. So this is everything that happened in the previous update only it's actually worthy of being called a chapter. And it's not like I was gonna study for finals anyway so ENJOY! I'd much rather spend my time writing GOOD stories than pretending to study while fretting over a bad story.**

Peeta had been expecting some stares as he rode the elevator down to see Katniss. Which was just poetic justice **_(_ love that movie!), **he figured. The District 12 victors had completley fooled the world with their whole "star-crossed-lovers" routine. From their struggle to get home together in the first game to their quest to die and let the other live in the second, everyone had been on the edge of their seats. And District 13, being that they have zero other form of enterainment, had been especially giddy when they learned Katniss had been recovered from the Captiol's clutches. And then they learned that Peeta wasn't too keen on "saving" Katniss, and it was like that moment when children discover Santa Claus isn't real.

So, to put it simply, the citizens of District 13 were quite disappointed.

But even considering all of that, Peeta hadn't expected everyone to drop what they were doing and turn to look at at him. At first, there was just shock in their eyes( one guy even took his glasses off and cleaned the lenses with his shirt before putting them back on). Then there was the narrowing of the eyes, the flaring of the nostrils, the clenching of the fists, and suddenly Peeta was wishing he had stayed with that wackjob and her fancy cards.

"Ah, Peeta."

He turned to his right and found Plutarch approaching him, smilling warmly. "Good to see you. It's been some time, hasn't it?"

He opened his mouth to answer, found it dry,and instead settled for nodding.

"Haymitch told me you'd be stopping by today" he the ex-game maker said, as he began to lead them through the corridors of rooms. Peeta found it disturbingly fascinating how many people were deemed mentally and/or physically ill in the district. Compare to District 12, though, this was heaven. At least here one didn't have to worry about starving to death on the freezing sidewalk.

"I must admit" Plutarch was saying. "I was a bit shocked when Haymitch came to me earlier."

Peeta rose his eyebrows.

The older man shrugged. "What, with word about you and Katniss going splitsville and you and your new honey, it's kind of hard for anyone to imagine you coming down here."

He sighed heavily and let the conversation drop with that. As the silence began to settle between the two, Peeta left himself drift away in his thoughts.

Katniss. Katniss Everdeen. The Girl On fire. The Spark of the Rebellion. The Mad Girl Chained To the Walls. He inhaled deeply and massaged his temples. He didn't know what he was expecting. How could confroting the girl that had turned his life into a living hell over and over again bring him any sort of rest? Things would be different if this was the old Katniss they were talking truth of the matter was that Katniss was gone. And she wasn't ever coming back. So what did dhe hope to accomplish by coming down here? Going back home to where it had all begun had done little to help, and the little words they'd exchaned at lunch had only made things worse. No matter what he did, he just couldn't escape; if he rejected her, everyone would hate him. If he accepted her, he'd have to live with the guilt of knowing that he was loving someone else.

Peeta ran a tired hand over his face and pulled himself out of his thoughts, confused as he noticed the approaching door; the only door in sight.

"Where are we" he aked, turning to face Plutarch.

The man kept his eyes trained ahead of him. "The lowest quarters in the District. It's where we keep our most explosive patients."

He looked around him. "I dont see any other doors."

"Katniss is the only one who really shows explosive behaviors. And we find it better to keep her away from loud sounds anyway" he explained, reaching for his key ring.

"Before we go in there" Peeta said slowly. "I need you to be honest with me, okay?"

"Okay" Plutarch replied hesistantly, shoving a silver key into the lock.

"Katniss...is she...how is she?"

"Well." He shoved the door open and lead him into the room with a large glass wall slicing it in half. "She kind of had a meltdown after your little chat at lunch today."

"Oh. You heard about that."

"Peeta, everyone'e heard about that" he said, sighing heavily.

"So how am I gonna talk to her if she's... not herself."

"You must keep in mind, Peeta, she hasn't been herself in months. Years, if you really think about it." He walked over to a table in the middle of the room and eyed the notebooks laying across it conflictingly. "Luckily, you wont be alone while you're in there."

He stared at him confusedly. "Prim" he asked, after pondering over it for a moment.

"No. Though she does stop by often, we dont want to pull her from her studies. I'm referring to someone who has more in interests in common with her."

Another moment of silence passed as a heavy thought settled on his brain. Peeta gulped and clenched his hands. "You cant possibly mean-"

"What's the matter" Gale called out as he entered the room. "Not happy to see me?"

"Why are you here?"

The eighteen year old shrugged and walked over to the two, his eyes dark and intense. "Well, Haymitch told me about your plan to talk to Katniss, and we decided it would be better if someone she was comfortable with would be with you."

"...So, you're gonna be there for the whole visit?"

"Be grateful, Peeta" Plutarch scolded. "It was either this or no visit at all."

Peeta averted his eyes over to the glass wall and peered through it. There was a hospital bed on the other side of the wall, where an unassuming Katniss sat. Her legs were cross and her eyes were blank as they stared at the wall ahead of her. Peeta knew she couldn't see him, but it still felt like that intense gaze was focused on him. He looked away and turned to look Gale in the eye. "So are we still censoring her or what?"

"Somewhat. We still stear clear of certain areas, like her father or her time with the Capitol, but aside from that there are no secrets between us. Whatever you have to say, you need to say it. She may seem a bit unhinged, but she'll be able to tell if you're keeping something from her. And that is the last thing you want to happen."

Plutarch gave the two boys a look as he sat down at the table and began to write something in a blue notebook. "You can go in when you're ready. Use your time wisely; you've only got fifteen minutes in there." He looked Peeta up and down. "Fifteen minutes to get everything off you chest."

Gale nodded and without hesitattion, walked over to the door seperating the rooms. He turned around and looked at the golden-haired boy. "You coming or what?"

Peeta slowly walked over to him, stared at the solid door, and thought back to when he had gone to view the ruins of his former home. He thought back to the relief that had coursed through his veins. He thought back to the feeling of a humongous weight that had been lifted off of his shoulders. He thought of the that state of mind you enter when you finally realize that although something is responsibility, you don't neseccarily have to do it.

He thought of how great it would be to feel that way again.

"Ready when you are" Peeta announced as he pushed the door open.

. . .

She didn't seem to acknowledge them, despite the fact that the sound of a metal door ricocheting off the concrete wall was loud enough to wake up anyone in the entire District.

Peeta himself winced as the noise reached his ears and flushed bright red when Gale turned to give him a poisonous glare. The older of the two sighed irritably before quietly walking over to the girl, instructing his partner to remain where he was. When he stood beside her, a smile broke out on his face as he laid a hand across her shoulder. Still no response. "Hey, Catnip" he said, a strange note of cheerfulness present in his voice. "How's it going?"

"..."

"Well, I"ll tell you. Beetee's working on some new weapons. Ya know, for the propos? It's all pretty amazing" he rambled as he pulled a loose strand of hair out of her face. "You should have seen the look on Finnick's face when he saw the trident. It was like watching someone come out of a deep sleep. I'm a bit more worried about his girl, Annie, though. She turned about fifty shades of green when she saw that thing. You remember, don't you?"

Katniss blinked and turned her pale eyes on him. "A-Annie?"

"Mm hm. We're trying to get her clearence. She really wants to see you."

Her eyes widened. "She does?"

"Yeah, she asks for you all the time. 'Where's Kitty?' She's a bit weird, but she seems nice."

"And Joey?"

Gale's smile widened, seeming to be more genuine this time. "Yeah, she wants to see you too. And Prim. She want to visit too, but Coin's kind of got her busy with studies and such."

Katniss pulled her knes close to her chest.

"Peeta's here to see you too."

"...He is?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

Gale rubbed a hand up and down her back. "I dunno...Do you want to talk to him?"

She was quiet for a second, folding and unfolding her hands nervously.

"Katniss? Do you want to see him?"

"...Yes, I'd like that very much."

Gale nodded, looking pained as he waved the boy over.

With slow steps and a pounding heart, Peeta made his way over to the bed. Gale walked over to the other side of the room, leaned against the wall, and crossed his arms as he sat on the bed beside the brown haired girl.

"Hey" Peeta greeted.

"Hi" Katniss remarked with a softness in her voice he couldnt place.

He closed his eyes for a moment prior to opening them, mimicking Gale's actions by plastering a fake smile on his face. "I dont think you remember me, but...I'm Peeta Mellark."

Katniss blushed deeply as an unexpected giggle tore through her throat. "And I dont think you know me. I'm Katniss Everdeen."

 **Now that it worthy of being called a chapter! And, yeah, that was a corny ending but it's certainly better than what I put up last night. Besides, I'm a sucker for happy endings. But, hold onto your pants! Because if Disney has taught us anything, it's that not every happy ending isn't as happy as they make us think they are.**


	10. Mellark and Hawthorne

Peeta cleared his throat, watching as Gale slowly made his way out the door. "So, um...how's...how's life?"

Katniss clenched and unclenched her hands. "Um...life is...life is great...actually."  
"Oh. That's um...That's great."  
She nodded and gestured to her discarded lunch tray on the floor. "Yeah, they actually feed me here, so that's a step up from where I was a few...months ago?" She giggled to herself. "Wow, it's already been a few months? It couldn't have been. Could it? No, no, it's only been a few days. But what.." She paused and looked up to find Peeta eyeing her uneasily.

"Um, are you okay?"  
"Huh? Oh, yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. I just lose track of time sometimes. Wow a few months. But yeah. It's not so bad in here once you get used to it. Sometimes, if I'm good, they let my friends come see me. And even if they don't, the people in grey are really nice to me."

He looked down at the plastic handcuffs connecting her wrists and ankles.

"It was Gale's idea" Katniss admitted, shrugging. When he gave her a confused look, she continued. "A compromise, I guess. It was either this or them chaining me to the bed for the rest of my...treatment."

Peeta nodded and let his eyes fall onto the floor. "But the, um, food."  
Katniss followed his gaze then forced her eyes back onto him, her head cocked to the side. "What about it?"  
"Did you not like it?"  
"No, the food's fantastic."  
He nodded and thought to himself, _I guess anyone who's almost starved to death for most of her life would say that._ "Then why is it on the floor?"

Her face turned bright red as she giggled bashfully. "Oh, um, I had one of my...'fits' earlier, I guess."

"You guess? You don't remember it?"  
Katniss shrugged and rubbed her hands up and down her grey arms. "Not really. It's not bad, though. I've been forgetting a lot lately of things lately" she explained, her voice lowering on the last part.

Peeta frowned and discreetly brought his hand closer to hers. Not close enough to freak her out, but enough for her to tense up slightly. He matched her blush with his own and quickly brought it back to his lap. "What, um...what do you mean?"  
Katniss sighed and forced herself to her feet. Her legs, Peeta noticed, wobbled slightly as she walked, and her breaths were coming out in labored efforts. "Katniss" he asked, his voice worried. "What's going on?"  
She gave a mirthless laugh and wrapped her arms around her, humming to herself. "Oh, they're not sure." She ran a hand against the brown desk beside her, nodding her head. "They don't think I know, but I do."  
"Know what?"  
She froze for a moment before turning around. From her position in the middle of the room and under the large lightbulb dangling from the ceiling, Peeta finally took notice of the way her once tight, stubborn, and emotionless face was now sagging, grey, and carrying a pained expression. He took a reflexive step back, his eyes wide.

"The people in grey" she continued. "They think they've found something. Some old virus back when the Districts were still rebelling. There's not a lot of data on it, apparently, but they know it was used towards the end of the war to wipe out the remaining rebels." She squeezed her eyes shut as she tried to process the memory. "They think maybe that explains the large number of...casualties. Sorry, I lost the word. Yeah, they think the virus had something to, um, do with the casualties towards the end. And that that's how we were so heavily... outnumbered." Katniss took a shaky breath and leaned her back against the cold wall. "1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 9, 9, 9, 9!"  
"Katniss!" Peeta rushed over to the seventeen-year-old and caught her just as her legs buckled underneath her. "Okay, I think I've heard enough. Just calm down, okay? We don't have to talk about that now, okay?"  
"It killed them" she whispered as he rocked her back and forward. "It killed them all. In a matter of months, Peeta. Two to six months, Peeta. Two to six months to live. It's already been six, and I'm so tired. And we don't even know exactly when I was infected, so it could be even shorter.

"I'm not ready to go yet" Katniss cried into his shoulder. "I-I'm not! I haven't done anything yet!"

Peeta bit his lip as a crushing weight suddenly fell onto his chest. How long had Katniss known? How long had she been alone to deal with this burden. He squeezed her harder and shushed her. "It's okay" he said, his voice wavering. "It's okay. You're gonna be okay."  
"How do you know that?"  
"Because. You're too important. If you died, the world would burst into flames. And I don't mean that symbolically either."  
Katniss sniffed her knows and laughed quietly.

"The world loves you. And if they find out you're dying because of the Capitol, whatever little resistance the Districts are showing would disappear." He snapped. "Just like that."  
She stared at him through tearful eyes in confusion. "So, what does that mean? The Capitol won't kill me?"  
"No, they probably would and then find some way to blame it on us. But that's not what I'm trying to say. I'm saying we all care about you. And we won't let you slip away."  
Katniss blinked and stared at him. "'We'?"

Peeta's eyes widened. He opened his mouth to say something when there was a sudden _swoosh_ from behind them.

"Peeta" Gale announced, his tone strict and serious. "That's enough."  
"Gale" Katniss whimpered.

His eyes softened. "I'm sorry, Catnip. But you know the rules."  
"But that couldn't have been the whole visiting time" Peeta interrupted.

"We all agreed it would be best if your time was cut short" he shrugged. "And besides... Katniss needs the rest."  
"No, I don't" she replied, face distorted in anger. "I'm perfectly fine."  
Gale grabbed Peeta by his shirt collar and forced him out of the room. They were only two paces away from the door when the banging started, followed by ear-splitting shrieks.

"I had everything under control" Peeta spat, struggling to get away from his iron grip.

"Yeah, yeah, Peeta." Gale had marched over to the a desk and was frantically pushing a button. "Come on. Come on. Can anyone hear me? Everdeen's having another episode."  
"What, you don't believe me?"  
"You have not seen her when she's having one of her fits, Peeta" the older of the two said sharply. "You do not know how much of a danger she is to herself, to everyone around her, so don't even come at me with this bullshit."  
"What?"  
"Acting like you care for her."  
"Who-who-who said I was acting?"  
"Oh, so you do care about her?"

"Of course I do. I just can't bear the thought of seeing her like this."  
"This isn't about you" Gale snapped as a team of doctors rushed in. Katniss's door was opened, her shrieks suddenly louder, before it shut again. "This is about Katniss."  
"I can't just walk in there and pretend like nothing has happened. Like that is not some other girl in there" Peeta said, his voice pained. "I've lost her once. I can't lose her again."  
"If you keep this up, you've already lost her."

Peeta crashed into the chair beside him and let the conversation die off.

Gale gave him a look of utter disgust before walking to the other side of the room and sitting on the table.

Nearly two hours passed before Peeta cleared his throat.

Gale sighed. "What?"  
The blonde frowned, rose to his feet, and walked over to the bitter man. "This...virus...that she has. Is it... is it bad?"  
"...Yeah."  
"Is there a cure?"  
"No."

"Can they find one."  
"Doubt it."  
"How long have they known?"

"Since she first got here."

"...How long does she have?"  
Gale stared at his hands. "A month. At the most."

"Is there anything I can do?"  
"...Yes."

He rose to his feet and gave him a look. "I don't know what's going on with you. But I need you to promise me something, okay?"

"Will it help?"

"I'm pretty sure it will, in the long run."

"Then yeah. Anything. Name it."

He leaned closer to him and stared him in the eye. "Don't make her fall in love with you again. Out of everything that's happened, the least you can do for her is give her peaceful death with no drama."  
Peeta looked down at his feet.

"Can you promise me that?"

"Peeta?"  
"Yeah?"  
"Promise me you won't make her fall for you."  
"...Fine. I promise."  
Gale nodded and walked over to the glass to watch as the doctors slowly strapped Katniss into bed. After a minute, Peeta walked over to him and asked "Now what do we do?"  
"Now?" His eyes were cold and locked onto the girl with the muzzle over her mouth. "Now we get our Team together."  
"To do what?"  
"To take down Snow. You in?"  
He nodded slowly. "Definitely. When do we start?"


	11. AN: Adoption

Now adopted by Scarlettarose.


End file.
